West Central Reporter

Western Illinois University’s men’s soccer team will face Liberty University for the first time in program history on Saturday, September 28, 2024. The match will take place at Osborne Stadium in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Liberty's team, known as the Flames, currently holds a record of 2-3-1 this season. They have split their two home matches with a win over Mount Olive and a loss to Georgia State. Most recently, they played against Clemson, losing by one goal. Liberty senior forward Michael Huss leads the team with four goals this season.

Western Illinois, often referred to as the Leathernecks, is on a winning streak with three consecutive victories and has won five out of their last six matches. This marks their best performance since 2019 and 2016. Their recent wins include a 3-2 victory at Gonzaga, a 4-0 win over Northern Illinois in Macomb, and a 2-1 triumph against IU Indy.

The Leathernecks have started strong this season with a record of 5-3-1. The team's goalkeepers Micah Ramirez, Alexis Michaud, and Youssou Ouendeno have all made significant contributions. The defense is composed mainly of underclassmen like Joel McIntyre, Ryan Wrobleski, Leevi Swearengen, and Oskar Grevelius who have performed consistently well. Midfielders Gabe Chapa, Oscar Olingdahl, and Benjamin Graham have been key in initiating attacks. The attack is led by Jimmy Baars along with Xavier Gagnon, Liam Gainey, Ty Duax, Diego Porras, and Tyler Philpott.

Following their dominant performance against Northern Illinois on September 24th where they won convincingly 4-0, three Western Illinois players received Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Player of the Week honors: freshman goalkeeper Alexis Michaud was named Goalkeeper of the Week after his seven-save clean sheet; Joel McIntyre was awarded Co-Defensive Player of the Week; senior midfielder Jimmy Baars was recognized as Offensive Player of the Week for scoring two goals.

Earlier in the season center-back Joel McIntyre also earned Defensive Player of the Week honors from OVC after leading his team to a draw against the Bulldogs.

In preseason polls for Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), senior midfielder Jimmy Baars was highlighted as an OVC Player to Watch following his previous year’s performance where he made nine shot attempts with four on goal.

For more information on Leatherneck Men's Soccer visit GoLeathernecks.com or follow them on social media platforms X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.